Klaus: Resolution may breach Czech-German Agreement

Germany's upper house of Parliament is calling on the Czech Republic to repeal the Benes Decrees. The move has surprised some lawmakers and could further strain relations between the two countries. The heads of both governments have downplayed the resolution passed by Germany's Bundesrat June 20, and the vote is not expected to affect Czech European Union entry. Nevertheless, the action has added fuel to the half-century debate over the expulsion of 2.5 million ethnic Germans from Czechoslovakia after World War II. The timing of the resolution, which follows the country's successful EU referendum, is also seen as symbolic. A faction of German politicians had lobbied to make repeal of the decrees a prerequisite to Czech membership. Czech politicians have feared that Germans could use EU membership as a means to sue for confiscated property. President Vaclav Klaus said the vote could breach the Czech-German Declaration on Mutual Relations, which he, as prime minister, signed with German Chancellor Helmut Kohl in 1997.